Carnegie Mellon Masters in Entertainment Technology

Well, the evolution of opportunities continues...
I was reading Dan Pink's A Whole New Mind, and he mentioned the Carnegie Mellon Entertainment Technology program.

After reading the website, this is what I know:
1) I like the program design. Lots of hands-on, experiential work. 80% of the work is project-based. This is GOOD.
2) Not only will I get to work with a creative team (my ideal environment), I know I would meet people who I could work with the rest of my life.
3) I would learn about a lot of stuff that I'm currently clueless about.
4) I can get into this program.


The phrase "entertainment technology" refers to a very real world of entertainment experiences made possible by the advent of primarily computer-mediated digital technologies. The term requires an elastic and fluid definition, required in large part by advances in technology that are making ever-new entertainment experiences and venues possible. What was meant by the phrase entertainment technology as recently as a year ago requires re-definition in light of recent developments on both technology and entertainment fronts. In general, though, the term 'entertainment technology' refers to:
* networked and free-standing interactive computer games
* avatar creation and utilization
* massive multi-player online games
* digital entertainment
* specialty venues such theme parks, themed retail, specialty restaurants, and other location-based entertainment venues
* motion-base rides
* console and PC interactive game design
* the creation of unique input devices
* virtual reality utilizing head-mounted displays or other technologies such as CAVES
* wearable computing for entertainment purposes
* massive immersive display environments such as planetaria and Omnimax
* interactive robot animatronics
* synthetic interview technology
* speech recognition
* augmented reality
* telepresence for entertainment and education purposes
* digital production and post-production
* sound synthesis, surround sound, 3-D sound, and streaming audio
* the development of haptic devices (i.e. force feedback)
* entertainment robotics

The ETC considers this all to be within its investigative domain; especially those aspects of entertainment technology our very own students and colleagues in the field, will create in the near future!

Different kinds of inspiration

I briefly visited a Freedom School today, and it was a joyous but jolting experience.

Freedom Schools are summer programs devoted to the underprivileged youth of Kansas City. Part summer school, part self-esteeming building, part community development, the Freedom Schools shine a beacon of light in what could be stagnant and desperate situations.

I watched the radiant faces of college students singing, clapping, and affirming the adorable children. Raw, genuine, compelling, hopeful. The strength and courage of the group was laced with unspoken urgency, but I felt more desperate than those singing-clapping-shouting children.

As much as I wanted to join this group of children...to sing, to learn, to dream...I was an outsider. I wore the uniform of "other." I resolved to come in jeans and a t-shirt next time (the interns are visiting another Freedom School in July). I tried to analyze the techniques the college facilitators used to engage the children, but that was partially to cover the pain of not being able to join.

But I learned a valuable lesson about different kinds of inspiration. There is the inspiration of seeing the big picture and initiating ripples in the fabric of our institutions. This is the inspiration of leverage and vision. There is also an inspiration of presence...where the ripples of my efforts would be the laughter erupting on the faces of children. The launching of dreams. The joy of play.

While I do not see this as an either/or situation, I do feel that Life is giving me more feedback on where my deep joys* lie....and where the world needs me.

Onward!


* Frederick Buechner defines vocation "as the place where our deep joys and the world's deep needs meet."

Thank you, Mr. Jobs.

These are excerpts from Steve Jobs' address to the Stanford graduating class. I've always had the fantasy of a summer internship at Apple. Who knows...

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."

P.S. I've left the best, most timeless gem (in my opinion) for you to discover on your own. Happy reading.

THE POWER OF ONE

THE POWER OF ONE
An army of one,
A seeker of peace,
The bearer of justice,
The vessel of empowerment.
One smile,
One hand out-stretched,
One kind word,
One unselfish act,
One light in the gray dawn.
It takes one moment,
One frozen moment in time-
To change one day in a life.
One moment-
One hour-
One day-
One life
It is in the power of one,
I am the power of one
--Noel Wolf

"Propinquity"

Propinquity
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
In social psychology, propinquity is one of the main factors leading to interpersonal attraction. It refers to the physical or psychological proximity between people. For example, two people living in on the same floor of a building have a higher propinquity than those living on different floors. See propinquity effect.
Propinquity is also one of the factors, set out by Jeremy Bentham, used to measure the amount of pleasure in a method known as felicific calculus.

Kauffman Pinball

I will post more on this phenomenon...later.

Imogen Heap

Well, thanks to Eric Whitacre, I've been listening to "Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap (he mentioned it on his forum). It's so gorgeous! I listen to it all the time...at work in the morning, at night when I'm driving...it's electronica that's beautiful like Paradise Lost: Opera Electronica is beautiful. And you guys know how crazy I was about that show....

You can download it from iTunes. :)

Contagious media

"Blogdex is a research project of the MIT Media Laboratory tracking the diffusion of information through the weblog community. Ideas can have very similar properties to a disease, spreading through the population like wildfire. The goal of Blogdex is to explore what it is about information, people, and their relationships that allows for this contagious media."

http://www.blogdex.net/

Man...that MIT Media Laboratory is pretty amazing!

Inspiring definitions! :)

"The National Innovation Initiative (NII) defines innovation as the intersection of invention and insight, leading to the creation of social and economic value."

Hee hee...I'm such a dork. I get excited by a definition! :)



http://www.compete.org/pdf/NII_Final_Report.pdf

From the Fabulous Thomas Friedman

"Economics is not like war. It can be win-win. But you need to be at a certain level to be able to claim your piece of the global pie that is both expanding and becoming more complex. Tax cuts can't solve every problem. This administration - which often seems more interested in indulging creationism than spurring creativity - is doing a very poor job of preparing this country for the next level."

http://www.compete.org/pdf/NII_04-15-2005.pdf

A Megan-moment!

This is from an email I send yesterday to Mary Klayder among other people. Perry Alexander is an Electrical Enginneering and Computer Science professor that Mary said I should talk to at some point. I just haven't been sure what to ask him about until now. :)


Hey!
So, I'm having another Megan-moment!
I've been falling in love with MIT and all the cool thing there since May or so, and I found their Masters of Science in Media Arts and Sciences (or Techonology, a second degree program).

This is from the "Who Should Apply and How" section:

All applicants are expected to be proficient at computer programming (e.g., JAVA, LISP, C++) and/or hardware design (e.g., electronics, microfabrication). Beyond that, it is fair to say that many successful applicants have academic backgrounds that are variously described as unorthodox, innovative, or self-generated. Their backgrounds are emphatically not narrowly technical, but instead anticipate the mix of disciplines found within the program; some of them come from art schools, some from engineering schools, and some from both or neither.
This is totally where I am, and where I'm going. And check out one of the possible research areas!!!

Opera of the Future: Tod Machover
This group has a special interest in inventing musical instruments that "understand" the artistic intentions of the performer, allowing for the enhancement and extension of musical expression. We design these instruments for use by highly skilled performers, as well as for students, novices and amateurs. We also explore how new media technology can modify music itself, and how such concepts can in turn be applied to interactive intermedia art and entertainment forms, of which opera is a particularly sophisticated example. Current directions in the group are to develop creative experiences and "musical toys" for children from ages 6 to 12, and to design future performance spaces that measure and react to performer sound, gesture, and intention. A portfolio of work (including musical examples) is required with your application. For more information see http://www.media.mit.edu/hyperins.


Looks like I should have that conversation with Perry Alexander in the fall. :)

And it's only my first week at Kauffman!! ;)
m

Geocaching

Oh my gosh...so cool. The scavenger hunt will never be the same.

Geocaching – “is an entertaining adventure game for GPS users. Participating in a cache hunt is a good way to take advantage of the wonderful features and capability of a gps unit. The basic idea is to have individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, a cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of rewards. All the visitor is asked to do is if they get something they should try to leave something for the cache.”A cache in computer terms is information usually stored in memory to make it faster to retrieve, but the term is also used in hiking/camping as a hiding place for concealing and preserving provisions."
www.geocaching.com

Flight of the Creative Class

Hey guys!
I came across this title at work. I LOVED Florida's The Rise of the Creative Class, and this description to his new work really resonates with me. Has anyone else read this? How do you feel about this topic? Florida also calls the "Creative Class" to use their creativity to enhance the quality of life of those not in the Creative Class. I really like that...I don't want to see the U.S. crumble.
Meg

Flight of the Creative Class
By Richard Florida
www.creativeclass.org
"Lately, the political arena has been swamped with proclamations by analysts and economists alike that the center of the global economy is shifting away from the United States and towards Asia and the European Union. China and India will grow exponentially in the coming decades, the argument goes, becoming the most politically and economically potent regions in the world. America, the giant of the 20th century, will succumb to the new superpowers....

The crux of this looming economic crisis lies in the growing global competition for talent. The United States - which has long been the preferred destination for the world's top entrepreneurial, innovative, scientific, artistic and cultural talent - is for the first time losing this key historical advantage. Various factors threaten to erode America's 20th century role as the world's foremost competitor for global creative talent. Tighter immigration and visa laws are driving away foreign talent from American universities and companies. Better occupational and educational opportunities, and less politicized scientific climates, are helping other countries recruit the cream of the crop. Greater tolerance of alternative lifestyles is luring some of the best and brightest from the U.S. as well. All the while, the social fabric and creative infrastructure of the U.S. is fraying; the highly-skilled and highly-educated have the world at their fingertips, while the working, urban, and rural poor are left to languish in a broken system.

Compounding America's looming creativity crisis is the dynamic nature of creative class workers, who seek not only fulfilling jobs, but also tolerant and vibrant communities and cities. This new class of workers does not define itself by national boundaries, but is highly mobile, willing to relocate for the best social, cultural, and economic opportunities. The creative class, 38 million strong in the U.S., produces a disproportionate share of wealth., accounting for nearly half of all wages and salaries earned - as much as the manufacturing and service sectors combined. Though the raw numbers are impressive, the U.S.'s current percentage of creative class employees already ranks only 11th worldwide on Florida's Global Creative Class Index."

"FLIGHT OF THE CREATIVE CLASS argues that this global competition for creative talent will be the defining economic issue of the 21st century. Finding ways to mitigate gross inequality, harness the creativity of all human beings, take on political polarization, and retain the traditional openness of American society to international influence will all be crucial to the success - or failure - of the United States."